


With You? Any Time

by consideritalljoy



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Thrawn - Timothy Zahn
Genre: Ambiguous ship, But this is as close to shipping as you can get without going all in, Canon Compliant, Dancing, Fluff and Humor, Hence the category, M/M, Personally I see them as friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-04
Updated: 2017-07-22
Packaged: 2018-11-23 10:32:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11400765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/consideritalljoy/pseuds/consideritalljoy
Summary: When Thrawn and Eli are invited to an Imperial gala, Thrawn asks Eli to show him how to dance, and several kinds of dancing at several kinds of venues ensue.





	1. Swing

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to Flukeoffate for the idea. ❤
> 
> I listed this as a ship fic, and it kind of is, but I also kind of leave a lot ambiguous, so... imagine what you will or will not, I guess. :)

“Commander Vanto?” Thrawn asked, looking up from his datapad during the night cycle of the Chimera. They were together in Thrawn’s quarters, collars unbuttoned, on either end of the small couch he’d gotten along with some promotion or another. 

Eli didn’t bother to look up from his own datapad for what would likely be another definition question. “Yes, sir?”

“Please explain the purpose of dancing to me. I’ve researched it and it seems somewhat useful for dexterity and endurance purposes, but certainly less so than simulated combat, and yet it is more popular. Why?” Once again, Thrawn managed to deliver a thoroughly ridiculous question with an innocently straight face. Eli hid a small smile. 

He didn’t actually know how to answer though. “Um, well, people don’t really think of it like that. It’s more for fun.”

Of course, that wasn’t enough for Thrawn. “Those who do not deem simulated combat ‘fun’ would be unlikely to deem such a similar action so, would they not?” 

“It’s more like…” Eli trailed off and looked above him to the right in thought. Thrawn had a point, in theory. He usually did. “Well, maybe you have to try it to really get it,” he settled. He looked back to his datapad and Thrawn did the same. 

The silence only lasted a few seconds before Thrawn broke it again. “Eli?” No title now. 

Eli followed his lead. “Thrawn?”

“Will you teach me?” 

Eli put his datapad down to that. Thrawn asked him a lot of questions about human culture, but usually he accepted Eli’s answers immediately. He certainly didn’t try to learn everything he asked about. Not off hand, anyway. “Is this about that gala we were invited to on Coruscant next week?”

“Yes. The invitation said there would be dancing, and human dances seem sufficiently dissimilar from Chiss ones that my already limited knowledge in that area is of no use to me.”

Already limited. Eli huffed in amusement. If Thrawn knew anything about Chiss dances and still only had limited knowledge, that meant he probably didn’t have too many partners to practice on. The other Chiss must all be idiots to have left him off the dance floor. Eli was not about to make the same mistake. “I’ll teach you, but on two conditions.”

“Name them.” Thrawn nodded once and placed his datapad on the side table next to him. 

Eli grinned. “I lead. And we put on some jazz.”

Thrawn rose an eyebrow. “Given my lack of experience, you leading seems appropriate. But what—or who—is Jazz?”

Laughing, Eli found a track on his datapad and pressed play. “You’ll love it.”

After a few seconds, the eyebrow lowered and Thrawn stood. “It is rather different,” Thrawn admitted. 

Eli stood as well and walked only a few steps toward Thrawn before stopping a few inches from him. Thrawn was a fair bit taller than he was, so Eli tilted his head back slightly to look him in the eyes. Smiling coyly, he maintained eye contact and took Thrawn’s hands in his. “Follow my lead,” he said. 

To say Thrawn stumbled would be inaccurate—the Chiss had never done anything even remotely akin to stumbling the entire time Eli had known him. He was stiff. Eli coached him through various dance movements, explaining each one as methodically as he could. 

When Eli had learned himself, it was by practicing with other people, the way he was practicing with Thrawn now. He hadn’t required verbal explanation. He didn’t even know the names of most of the movements he was teaching. Even so, his years defining things for Thrawn gave him enough knowledge on the Chiss to know what he’d need explained and how to do it. 

They were both working up a bit of a sweat. “Like this?” Thrawn asked. 

“You have the movements down, but you’re still too tense. This isn’t combat. Relax a little. Well. Relax a lot. More like this.” Eli swung Thrawn around and dipped him in a quick, sweeping motion. 

Thrawn’s glowing eyes stared up at him and Eli was keenly aware of how intently Thrawn was studying him. “Interesting.” Eli didn’t really think the comment only pertained to the dancing. 

They kept going. Thrawn loosened up considerably the longer they went at it. Neither were likely to sleep much before the next day cycle. Eli wasn’t sure he minded. Thrawn certainly didn’t seem to. 

They traded off leading and following seamlessly. Leading, Thrawn sent Eli spinning and just as aptly drew him back closer. Eli let out all his breath at once and smiled with momentarily widened eyes. “Now you’re getting it. You’ll have no problem wooing Pryce if you keep this up.” The smile became a smirk. 

Thrawn froze and his eyebrows furrowed. He looked almost hurt. “You don’t think I’d-”

“Of course not,” Eli laughed. 

“Good,” Thrawn breathed, all concern clearing from his face. 

Eli couldn’t help it. “That Yularen, though…”

“Eli. Stop.” The words were sharp and clipped, but the red eyes shone just right to tell Eli that Thrawn knew he was joking. It usually took him a while to notice a joke, but once he understood the new context, he seemed to go along with it. Maybe he just liked watching Eli. He could work with that. 

Spinning so close he nearly collided into Thrawn, Eli lifted one eyebrow and smirked. “Make me,” he dared. 

Wordlessly, Thrawn moved and in one motion Eli found himself parallel to the ground, held up at the waist by Thrawn’s arm. 

Eli blushed. “Like I said, you’re really getting it.”


	2. Ballroom

The ballroom’s size still took Eli off guard. He would have thought himself used to the grandeur of Coruscant and of the navy after so many years, but seeing the softly lit golden hall lined with windows overlooking hundreds of miles of shimmering surface-level Coruscant in every direction, his breath was still taken away.

His breath was taken away for an entirely different reason when he saw the dances toward the back of the hall. “Krayt,” Eli muttered under his breath to Thrawn. “This isn’t anything like what we do on Lysatra.”

Thrawn followed Eli’s gaze. “It doesn’t seem that much different to me.”

Eli blew a huff of extra air out his nose. “That’s because you can’t even tell the difference between dancing and simulated combat.” What he’d taught Thrawn… it was all quick movements and twirls. This was stiff sparring. 

“They aren’t that different either,” Thrawn said.

The only thing Eli really knew for certain at that point was that one way or another, Thrawn was going to end up on that dance floor, and that when he did, it wouldn’t be fun. Conveniently located at the other end of the hall near the dancing was a bar. At least he’d be on hand if something came up, Eli decided. “I’m getting a drink. You coming?”

Of course, Thrawn did. Eli wove expertly through the maze of Imperial officers, carefully avoiding each one. They made it within only a few feet of alcohol when their luck gave out. 

Leaving the dance floor to walk over was the Governor of Lothal—Pryce. Eli’s hopes that the governor would leave them both alone were dashed as she headed directly for Thrawn. “Commodore Thrawn! It’s a pleasure to see you again.”

“Likewise, Governor,” Thrawn answered without the slightest hint of Eli’s own frustration. 

Eli rolled his eyes and took his first shot.

Governor Pryce’s smiles never seemed really genuine to Eli—always more like some kind of calm before a storm. “Is the dancing in the Core Worlds much different than on your home planet?” 

“A fair bit, but I believe I am competent.” Not in this style, Thrawn wasn’t. But Eli kept his mouth shut. 

Governor Pryce lifted one eyebrow and focused her eyes into a coy glint. “Would you like a chance to prove that?”

“If you desire proof. May I have this dance?” How? Eli wondered. All he’d wanted was a drink. How was this already happening? Barely out of the gate… 

“You may,” Thrawn said, offering her his arm. Of course. Really, how had Eli expected any different? Thrawn and Governor Pryce walked toward the dance floor together, and the only thing left for Eli to do was watch. 

He wasn’t sure if it was to his advantage or to his horror when he realized they’d be close enough for him to hear. 

After only a few moments, the first comment came. “You are quite the relaxed dancer,” the governor told Thrawn. Or what they were doing was too stiff, more like. 

“I had a skilled instructor,” came Thrawn’s reply. Eli winced. Governor Pryce was skilled at reading in between verbal lines.

A shift in the music signaled everyone to switch partners for a few minutes, which gave Eli hope. Hope that was dashed when Thrawn and the governor met again only a few minutes later.

The extra time had probably only given Governor Pryce time to unravel the secret in her own mind. “I wonder at your home world being so far removed from known space. Your technique suggests something akin to Wild Space,” she said. 

“Interesting,” Thrawn said back, as blankly as ever. He knew she’d figured it out.

The governor pressed further. “Your aide is from Wild Space, isn’t he? What a strange coincidence.” There was nothing coincidental about it, and she knew it. Eli felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment and he hid behind a group of officers when Thrawn and Pryce came closer for a moment. 

“Indeed,” Thrawn said calmly. The discussion ended. Really, he was doing pretty good, given what he had to work with. He was a fast learner. This stiff stuff was probably more comfortable for him, anyway. 

Eli only hoped it would last. Of course, all good things come to an end. 

The music shifted again to a repetition of the theme in playful staccato. With the shift, the dance did get more lively, but in Thrawn’s case, it seemed to be a signal for all the wrong things. 

Thanks to Eli’s own instruction, Thrawn was actually rather good at relaxed control, and he began to show his hand too much for Eli’s liking right then. When the music came to a lively climax, it happened. 

Eli held his breath. Everyone froze and stared. 

Governor Pryce looked up at Thrawn coyly. “Do they dip? That is, on your home world?” she asked loudly and with an edge of authority. She was trying to salvage the mistake. As much as Eli disliked her style of social combat, he very much rooted for her in that moment. 

“Do they not here?” Thrawn asked without moving. 

Pryce smiled. “No.”

“That is unfortunate. It is the most enjoyable motion,” Thrawn said. Eli rolled his eyes. It was like he was purposefully avoiding her gentle correction. He was still just holding position. Was it even possible that he still didn’t know what was expected of him?

“Is it?” Pryce said jovially. “Well, you do it well. I can see why you’d think that.” 

Thrawn still wasn’t moving. “Thank you,” he said. 

“You can let me up now,” Pryce finally stated directly. She was maintaining control somehow. Eli had never been more impressed with her. 

At that, Thrawn immediately released her and took her arm again. “My apologies.”

Governor Pryce only smiled more genuinely. “Accepted. Shall we continue?” As the next song started, the two continued to dance together. 

Eli took another shot. 

They danced two more dances. Eli took stock of the room. For the majority of those present, the incident seemed entirely forgotten. Thanks to Pryce, Eli knew. Her acceptance and command of the mistake, and willingness to continue afterward, had no doubt made all the difference. 

Eli wouldn’t put it past her to have some long-term agenda for how Thrawn could pay back the favor, but he really didn’t care right then. Pryce’s social manipulation worked, and that was all that mattered. 

When the pair split off and Thrawn walked back to him, the first words out of his mouth were, “Pryce kind of really saved your ass out there.”

“How so?” Thrawn asked. 

Eli didn’t hesitate. “You’re an alien with Wild Space dance skills. If she hadn’t reacted so gracefully to the whole thing, it could have been a lot worse. As it is you’ve still got plenty of stares, even more than usual.”

“I see. How much alcohol have you consumed?” A total change of topic. 

“Enough,” Eli answered. “More if you start dancing again.” 

Thrawn faintly smiled as if in memory. “Do you always drink to excess at Imperial events?”

“Only when you make it necessary,” Eli answered with narrowed eyes and a lopsided smile. 

“I see. Here is my offer: I won’t dance here again tonight and you’ll stop drinking for now.”

Eli rolled his eyes. “Oh, come on. I’ve barely had any. And why do you ask, anyway?”

“I have an idea, but it cannot be enacted yet, and requires that you be at least mostly sober.” Any idea that happened at an Imperial gala and required Eli to be sober likely wasn’t his kind of a plan, but Thrawn also rarely asked for such things. 

The three he’d had would have to do. “Fine. It better be good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I'm honest, I just really liked the image of Thrawn casually holding Arihnda horizontal in his arms in locked position in the middle of a dance that featured no such move. And I'm a little bit referencing chapter 4 of [**Imperials Have More Fun**](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10838289), especially towards the end. That whole series is great, by the way. If you like this you'll love that. Highly recommended.


	3. Club

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone's interested, the background music here is "Sure Fire Winners" by Adam Lambert.

“Commander, I am not fully aware of the protocol concerning how long guests must stay at galas such as this,” Thrawn said roughly an hour later. 

Eli grinned and looked up at him. “You wanna know when we get to leave?” He’d been thinking the same thing. But then, he pretty much always was. Eli really, really didn’t like fancy Imperial galas. He always felt so out of place, and with Thrawn wandering around, always on edge. 

“Precisely,” Thrawn answered. 

Eli only spared a few extra seconds looking around. The scene was about the same as it had been all night—a few officers had come to talk to Thrawn, but no one was paying much attention to either of them. “It’s already been over two hours and you’re definitely not the most popular man here. I’d say it’s pretty much up to us.”

“Excellent. Have you any compelling reason to stay?” Thrawn asked, his normal resolute expression betraying just the slightest hint of sarcasm. He knew Eli’s answer already, most likely. 

“Hell no,” Eli affirmed. 

“As I expected,” Thrawn said with a small smirk. “If you would not mind leaving, I may begin enacting the plan I spoke of earlier.”

Eli had to relay to Thrawn not to simply make a straight line directly to the exit, and helped the Chiss through the long ballroom more discretely. Once they were well into the hallway and out of sight, his posture relaxed. 

As soon as they were back at their quarters, Thrawn advised he change. “You may consider the leather jacket you bought last week” was all the further guidance he would give. Eli’s cheeks reddened when Thrawn brought up the impulse-buy, but he grabbed it anyway.

“Do we have to go out again?” Eli objected. The answer was yes, and so Eli changed into street clothes with a sigh, and the two left again for an undisclosed location. 

They got to the lift and Thrawn pressed such a high number of floors down that Eli nearly swooned. “Exactly how deep into this planet are you taking us?” he asked, leaning against the back wall. 

“Far enough that we stand no chance of being recognized,” Thrawn answered, out of uniform but still very much not leaning against walls. 

Eli chuckled. “I know I said you were a pariah out there, but I think you’re overreacting.”

“Define ‘pariah,’” Thrawn asked.

Tossing his head around in thought, Eli answered, “The staring thing. You know, ‘fish out of water.’ That stuff.”

Thrawn nodded once in understanding. “I see. This is unrelated.” He didn’t elaborate. 

“Then what is it related to?” Eli pressed.

“You will soon see” was Thrawn’s only answer. 

When they exited the lift, Eli was back on edge. Was this better than the gala? Probably, Eli decided with a grimace. That didn’t make the current situation safe; it just meant that throwing punches in case of emergency would be more allowable than at the gala. 

They continued walking in, for Eli, a tense silence, until Thrawn abruptly stopped in front of what looked to Eli like a seedy hole-in-the-wall with no windows and blaring music audible through the walls.“This is a nightclub,” he said blankly. 

“Yes, it is,” Thrawn answered. 

“You took us to a nightclub,” Eli repeated in disbelief. 

“Yes, I did,” Thrawn answered in exactly the same tone. 

Eli looked up at him and squinted. “You do realize the dancing isn’t going to be swing here either, right?”

Thrawn shrugged. “Well, as long as it’s a night of trying new styles. Shall we?”

Eli looked back at the door. “Oh, hell yeah.”

The florescent lights nearly blinded Eli as he walked in after the dark and dingy streets thousands of levels below Coruscant. The smoke and moisture in the air was enough to give the room a haze that cast everything into a slight purple fuzz. The sheer amount of people in the building created an atmosphere all together different than anything else Eli had experienced. It was like entering a separate universe. 

He stood next to Thrawn and lifted an eyebrow. He gestured widely, nearly hitting two different people in the motion. “I needed to be sober for this?”

“I said ‘for now,” did I not? That gala was our last official engagement for the entire week. The night can last as long as we want. Longer, since we’re both starting out sober,” Thrawn said. 

Tipsy enough to handle Imperial galas was not nearly as satisfying as drunk with Thrawn at a seedy nightclub on the lower levels of Coruscant. Eli grinned and looked up at Thrawn. “You’re a tactical genius.”

Thrawn looked down to meet Eli’s gaze with an amused smile that only barely hid excitement. “I don’t see what that has to do with it, but thank you.” 

Eli ordered their first round of drinks—and this place had better options for aliens with high metabolism than the Imperials kept—and clinked his glass against Thrawn’s. “Here’s to the Chimera never finding out about this.”

Second round. “And here’s to Pryce being useful for once.” 

The third didn’t include a toast, and neither did the fourth. 

A male Pantoran dressed in—actually, Eli couldn’t really tell—sidled up next to Thrawn at the bar and leaned in close. When he saw the eyes, Eli noticed only one second of shock before he actually got closer. “Is there any particular way I could get to know you?” he asked Thrawn. Eli stiffened.

Thrawn leaned almost imperceptibly closer to Eli and away from the Pantoran. “What are your thoughts on art?” he asked. The Pantoran’s eyes grew hungrier still, and his eyes continually drifted downward.

Eli rolled his eyes. He wasn’t at all sure Thrawn was even aware of what was happening. Eli stood and, wrapping his right arm around Thrawn’s waist, leaned his chin over Thrawn’s shoulder. “This guy bothering you?” he asked, glaring daggers at the Pantoran for exactly .2 seconds before boring into Thrawn’s with as much intensity as he could manage. 

“I don’t believe that-”

Confidence was key. Eli didn’t hesitate and put his left forefinger against Thrawn’s lips. “No, no, babe, no need to explain. I’m here now. Let’s grab a dance, yeah?” He nudged for Thrawn to get up and the Chiss, thankfully, didn’t question it. The Pantoran looked to Eli one more time, and Eli poured as much intensity as he could into the gaze. The Pantoran dropped it and headed off somewhere else.

As soon as he was gone, Eli removed his arm from Thrawn and stepped a full step away. “Sorry, sir,” he whispered. “I didn’t think you wanted him hitting on you like that.” 

Thrawn only seemed quizzical. “There was no hitting involved,” he said. 

Eli snorted. “Not that kind. It was a sexual advancement.” He grimaced at his choice of words. “Of a kind.” 

“I see,” Thrawn said. “You took control of the situation well, and rather convincingly.” 

Eli’s face was burning. He hoped Thrawn couldn’t see. “Yeah, well. Anyway.”

“Was wanting to dance a part of the charade as well?” Thrawn asked. 

“Um. Maybe. Then again, maybe not…” Eli admitted slowly. He looked out onto the packed dance floor not very far from them. 

As Eli had said, to put it mildly—the dancing wasn’t swing. First of all, there wouldn’t have been enough room. Second of all, it wasn’t so much about style as it was about inventive ways to press bodies together vertically. 

“This isn’t so much dancing as it is flailing about,” Thrawn observed.

“Yeah, well, you’re the one who took us here,” Eli laughed. “I told you.” 

“No, no,” Thrawn clarified thoughtfully. “That isn’t to say it is without merit. It’s a different kind of artistic.” 

How much harm could it do? “Well?” Eli asked, grabbing one of Thrawn’s hands in a sudden, bold motion and pulling him forward. “They’re playing our song.”

“I don’t believe I’ve ever heard this song before.”

“Then just pretend,” Eli laughed, and pulled Thrawn closer to him and to the dance floor all in the same motion. Thrawn relented without any hesitation. Actually… he seemed almost pleased. 

Eli didn’t expect Thrawn to _feel_ as good as he did. 

The level of sensory input should have had him fighting anxiety, but the warmth in Eli was due solely to the heat of the room and the jittery excitement of Thrawn’s body against his. 

They switched mainly between drinking and dancing. Eli slowly forgot where he was, or what day it was, or why either of them were there. There was only Thrawn, and alcohol, and music, and lights. He turned down the death sticks. Maybe another time. 

Thrawn was right about the night lasting a long time. 

—

Eli blinked his eyes open. He was in his own bed. Thrawn stood over him. “You are very hungover,” he explained.

“You don’t say?” Eli said, rubbing his palm against his forehead. The buzzing in his head wasn’t likely to go away for a while. It got worse when he tried to sit up, so he didn’t.

“Do you feel likely to stay conscious this time?”

Eli groaned softly. “How many times has it been?”

“A fair number. I took us back here. You were partially conscious at the time, do you not remember?”

Eli tried to recall the last time he’d been conscious, but the thinking hurt his head more. “Nope,” he conceded. 

Thrawn nodded slowly. “Probably just as well.” 

Eli nodded until passing out again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this what an actual nightclub is like? Who knows, really. I'm 18. And also very asexual. I tried, my guys. I tried. And hey, it was fun, so here we are. I'm open to suggestions for change if I'm wildly off the mark anywhere, lol. 
> 
> Edit: Thanks to those who tell me I portrayed nightclubs accurately. Apparently my imagination aided by some episodes of Alias worked out for me. :3


	4. Preference

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want mood music, you wouldn't be too off the mark with [**Turnabout Jazz Soul - Track 8 - Godot - The Fragrance of Dark Coffee**](https://youtu.be/HMnrl0tmd3k). ;)

The next time Eli woke up, he felt much better. The pounding in his head subsided, and sitting up only caused a moment of slight nausea. He looked across the room to see Thrawn quietly scrolling through a datapad as usual.“Hey, I think I’m finally getting over it.” With a small sigh, he added, “It’s too bad being hungover hurts so much when getting drunk can be so fun.”

Thrawn tilted his head slightly to the right in a small nod. “I’m glad you’re recovered, but I do not envy your metabolism.”

“We should do that again sometime,” Eli said, swinging his feet around to the floor. He chuckled. “And not just for the drinking.”

“I agree,” Thrawn said, selecting a soft jazz song to play in the background before setting the datapad down and continuing. “However, now that I have experience with three styles of human dancing, I believe I may knowledgeably state a preference.”

“And?” Eli asked. 

Thrawn stood, walked until he was close to Eli, and bowing slightly, offered Eli his hand. “May I?”

Grinning, Eli took it and stood. Thrawn’s other hand moved to his waist without a moment’s hesitation, and while the style was similar in some ways to the one he’d been taught, this one was slower… and closer. Eli’s chest rubbed against Thrawn’s and, due to their height difference, Thrawn’s shoulder blade came right to where Eli could rest his cheek. 

Eli looked up to see Thrawn’s eyes open but glazed over. He smirked and looked back down. “You really can’t get enough of this, can you?”

“I believe I understand now why this is more popular than simulated combat,” Thrawn said smugly, following Eli’s lead and resting his cheek against the top of Eli’s head as they continued to sway.

“Told you you had to try it.” 

He could feel Thrawn’s smile. “Thank you for teaching me.” The high-energy swing from only a few nights ago had been fun, and the dancing at the nightclub had been, as Thrawn would say, “interesting,” but this… Eli had to agree with Thrawn. This was best. 

He smiled into Thrawn’s neck and pulled away just enough to reply without muffling his voice. “Anytime. I mean it. Dancing, that is. With you? Any time.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A mere 380 words, but I couldn't resist a chance to take this tiny string of fluff fics and tie them all back up by mirroring the first one. And... well... I couldn't really resist the rest of what I put in here, either. ;) I hope you all enjoyed "the dance fic" as much as I enjoyed writing it.


End file.
